Metrically conditioned /a/-syncope in Modern Hebrew compounds
Faust, Noam (Université Paris 8)
Torres-Tamarit, Francesc (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament de Filologia Catalana)

Date:	2024
Abstract:	In Modern Hebrew, some, but not all, nominals exhibit obligatory /a/-syncope in open syllables if they are antepretonic in a simple (nominal) word. The same vowels optionally syncopate in any pretonic syllable in non-final members of compounds. Here we first show that syncope in compounds fills a gap in the typology of weak positions. We then propose a formal analysis in Gradient Harmonic Grammar (Smolensky and Goldrick 2016), which distinguishes between a weak /a/ and a strong /a/. Only the former undergoes syncope in both configurations; and only in non-compounds is it protected by a positional faithfulness constraint referencing the head foot of the prosodic word. Optionality in compounds is shown to follow from Base-Derivative faithfulness.
Grants:	Agencia Estatal de Investigación PID2020-113971GB-C22
Note:	Altres ajuts: acords transformatius de la UAB
Rights:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, fins i tot amb finalitats comercials, sempre i quan es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Subject:	Gradient Harmonic Grammar ; Metrical strength ; Modern Hebrew ; Positional faithfulness ; Prosodic compounding ; Syncope
Published in:	Natural language & linguistic theory, Published online: 29 May 2024, ISSN 1573-0859

DOI: 10.1007/s11049-023-09607-z

19 p, 1.3 MB

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